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Food Safety

On July 30, 2009, the House passed H.R. 2749, the Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009, by a vote of 283 to 142 (Roll Call 680). Agriculture Republicans remain committed to legislation that ensures the safety and security of America’s food supply. While the goal of this bill is to enhance food safety, it comes at a heavy toll on producers and does virtually nothing to hold federal bureaucrats accountable for their role in preventing food-borne illness.

In particular, it does not require the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to spend one additional penny on the inspection of food even though it imposes significant regulatory burdens on the food production and processing system. In addition, the hundreds of millions of dollars in associated fees included in the bill represent a new tax on food production, which, along with the added regulatory burdens, will increase the cost of food for consumers and force production out of the U.S. User fees, quarantine authority, mandatory recall and civil penalties will do nothing to prevent food-borne disease outbreaks, but will do plenty to keep federal bureaucrats busy in Washington, DC. A companion bill in the Senate, S. 510, the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, was approved by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on November 18, 2009 but has not been passed by the Senate.